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GDC 20006 Interview (con'd)
FiringSquad: The last event for GDC this year will be the Video Games Live music concert. Why was this event brought over to serve as the capstone for GDC?
Jamil Moledin: It’s a great example of the “What’s Next” theme, in that you have two prominent developers, Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall, broadening the industry’s appeal beyond core gamers. While we as gamers envision this as a great treat, there are just as many fans of concert music who attend these events, who are looking for a whole new canon of musical literature to enjoy. And like games such as Brain Age, it brings families and people of all ages onto the same playing field when it comes to games.
FiringSquad: What other major new events will be held at GDC this year?
Jamil Moledin: The biggest new addition is the Graphic Impact Competition, which is a completely open contest to create compelling original art for a potential new IP. We’ve partnered with CG Society to combine our game art and visual effects communities and capabilities to bring it to life. The contest is running on CG Society’s forums, and the finalists’ work will be on display in the GDC Concourse. Finally, the winners will be awarded at a special visual arts VIP reception on Thursday night of GDC, with a set of prizes donated by our sponsors. It’s a great way to bring a higher level of interactivity to the GDC experience, while giving special attention to the artist.
FiringSquad: What do you think is the biggest benefit for game developers to attend GDC?
Jamil Moledin: It’s interesting that you ask for a singular benefit, because attendees consistently tell me that it’s a combination of three factors: learning, inspiration, and networking. Because of these reasons, GDC is a key feature on their calendar and career trajectory.
FiringSquad: Last year GDC was held in San Francisco but it's back in its long time home in San Jose this year. Will GDC be staying in San Jose for the foreseeable future?
Jamil Moledin: No. GDC will be in San Francisco in 2007, in both Moscone West and North. We are busting at the seams trying to fit GDC in San Jose this year, which I suppose is a good problem to have, but we will have room to grow in SF.
FiringSquad: Finally, is there anything else you wish to say about GDC 2006?
Jamil Moledin: Yes, I would strongly recommend attending the two platform keynotes from Sony’s Phil Harrison and Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata. Trust me!
FiringSquad would like to thank Jamil Moledin for taking part in this interview. We wish him and the rest of the GDC organizers the best of luck with GDC 2006, and GDC 2007 in the future!
Batman: Arkham City PC Review Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to 2009’s smash-hit action game Batman: Arkham Asylum. As the name suggests, you will be reprising your role as the Caped Crusader and going against an even larger 'prison' filled with Gotham's criminals and villains. A textbook example on how to do a proper sequel, Arkham City takes what worked in the original, excised or improved upon what didn’t, and elevated everything to an even greater scope. The PC version suffered from a few months of delay, but in that time, Rocksteady worked closely to NVIDIA to implement some familiar technologies from the last game, such as PhysX and 3D Vision, along with new DirectX 11 optimizations. But how well was the whole package executed? Read on to find out!
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The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim PC Review The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is Bethesda Softworks’ latest offering in their series of epic fantasy RPGs, as well as one of the most highly-anticipated PC titles of 2011. As the Dovahkiin, or Dragonborn, prepare to take the fight to the mythical beasts that have returned to the realm after centuries of slumber, all the while exploring a huge and highly-detailed open world.
The PC version of the game promises enhanced graphical fidelity, standard RPG trimmings such as hotkeys and quick-save, as well as unbridled mod support, something we’ll all be thankful for once they release that SDK. Skyrim has already sold millions of copies and set records for play-time on Steam... Find out why in today's review, which happens to be one of the biggest and most in-depth articles on the subject out there!
L.A. Noire Complete Edition PC Review L.A. Noire, as the name clearly states, is a video game built on the tropes of one of the greatest periods of American cinema: film noir. Developed by the now defunct Australian developer Team Bondi and published by Rockstar Games, this title has been out on consoles for a full six months before finally making its way to the PC. This “Complete Edition” of the game features improved graphics, keyboard/mouse controls, and every bit of previously-released DLC for free. But was it truly worth the wait? Read on and find out!
Intel Core i7-3960X Sandy Bridge-E Performance Review
Today marks the launch date for Intel’s Sandy Bridge-E line of processors, a new family of high-end Core i7 products based on the LGA 2011 platform. This new socket is poised to replace the existing LGA 1366 specification used by the more powerful Nehalem and Westmere parts from the past couple years, specifically Bloomfield and Gulftown, the Core i7-9xx+ line of CPUs.
With 6 cores, 15MB of cache, and support for quad-channel DDR3-1600 memory, the Core i7-3960X sounds like quite a catch. Want to know more about it and how it performs? Read on!
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Xbox 360 Review
The self-appointed "most anticipated game in history" launched worldwide this past Tuesday. Why, it's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, of course (of course), what else? Unsurprisingly, the military FPS debate between this and Battlefield 3 rages on, but now that both have been released, surely we can take a look and objectively evaluate them both? Luke's taken the Xbox version of MW3 for a spin this week, so to find out what he thinks of it in today's review!
Stronghold 3 Review
The latest sequel in the long-running real-time strategy franchise from FireFly Studios, Stronghold 3 is all about building your dream castle and defending it against sieging enemies. Almost exactly one decade after the first game was released, this new title promises a return to the classic and well-received gameplay that has been strayed so far from in more recent iterations. Does it live up to those expectations? Will (AKA Synchronous Failure) tells us all about it in his first official FiringSquad review, so read on!
Battlefield 3 PC Review - Single-player Impressions
One of the most highly-anticipated PC games of the year is upon us; Battlefield 3 is now available in North America! EA/DICE have finally delivered a sequel to the core Battlefield franchise, a proper follow-up to BF2. Having played through the game's single-player campaign already, ahead of the multiplayer festivities kicking off around midnight, I figured I'd share my impressions ASAP. Is it really a worthy addition to the core Battlefield series, or just another bullet point on the back of the box? Read on and find out!
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Equal parts action and strategy, this is a tower defense game that not only puts you in command, but on the front lines of combat, as well. Slaughter thousands of orcs, ogres and other vile creatures of fantasy that invade your fortresses through 24 levels of the story-based campaign. With high levels of replayability thanks to its scoring and leaderboard functionality, multiple difficulty levels, and various styles of play, it sounds a steal at only $15. Does it deliver on all that’s promised, though? Read on and find out!
What will be the big events at GDC this year?
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